Ksamil weather questions are almost never about the air. People want to know whether the water out to the islands will be warm enough to swim the whole way, whether the sunbeds will still be out, and whether a grey week in October means the trip is wasted. Those three answers move on different calendars, and the forecast app on your phone only covers one of them.
Ksamil is a village of shallow bays at the bottom of Albania, 20 minutes south of Saranda and directly across a narrow strait from Corfu. Its climate is Saranda's with a slightly warmer sea, and the month you pick changes the trip more than almost anywhere else on this coast.
Ksamil weather at a glance
Air figures are 1991–2020 averages from the ERA5-Land reanalysis (Open-Meteo historical archive) for the grid point over Ksamil, averaged by us in October 2026. Sea temperatures are the 10-year monthly averages from seatemperature.info.
| Month | High / low | Rain | Days with 1 mm+ rain | Sea | What it means in Ksamil |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 12°C / 5°C | 119 mm | 11 | 15.5°C | Shuttered village, no beach life |
| February | 13°C / 6°C | 120 mm | 11 | 14.6°C | Coldest water of the year |
| March | 15°C / 7°C | 109 mm | 11 | 14.9°C | Quiet, green, cold sea |
| April | 18°C / 10°C | 77 mm | 10 | 16.4°C | Butrint weather, not beach weather |
| May | 23°C / 15°C | 51 mm | 7 | 19.6°C | Empty beaches, cold-ish water |
| June | 27°C / 19°C | 25 mm | 4 | 23.2°C | Swimmable, before the crush |
| July | 30°C / 22°C | 14 mm | 3 | 25.2°C | Hot and full |
| August | 31°C / 22°C | 19 mm | 3 | 26.2°C | Warmest sea, busiest month |
| September | 26°C / 19°C | 109 mm | 8 | 25.0°C | The smart month |
| October | 22°C / 15°C | 136 mm | 9 | 22.5°C | Warm sea, closing village |
| November | 17°C / 11°C | 193 mm | 12 | 20.3°C | Wettest month |
| December | 13°C / 7°C | 178 mm | 13 | 17.5°C | Off-season |
Read the rain-day column loosely: reanalysis counts light drizzle as rain, so a weather station would log fewer wet days. The highs are typical afternoons, not heatwaves. Corfu's airport station, across the strait, has recorded 42.8°C.
The best time to visit Ksamil for weather
For the islands swim. July to mid-September. The sea is 25 to 26°C, warm enough to swim out to the nearest island and back without getting cold, and there is almost no rain from June to August.
For warm water without the August crush. The first three weeks of September. The sea is 25°C, a touch warmer than July, and the village is noticeably calmer once the August holidays end. The catch is the first autumn storm, which usually lands in the second half of the month.
For a cheap, quiet trip that still includes swimming. June. The sea reaches 23°C, rain is rare (25 mm across the whole month), and the beach bars are open but not yet full.
For Butrint rather than the beach. April, May or October. Butrint is ten minutes away and is far better in 18 to 23°C than in a 31°C August afternoon.
When not to come for the beach. November to March. November is the wettest month, at about 193 mm, the sea drops below 18°C by December, and most of Ksamil's restaurants and sunbed concessions are closed.
Ksamil sea temperature by month
| Month | Sea °C | Sea °F | Good for |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 15.5 | 60 | Nothing without a wetsuit |
| February | 14.6 | 58 | Year low |
| March | 14.9 | 59 | Cold dips |
| April | 16.4 | 62 | Paddling |
| May | 19.6 | 67 | Short swims |
| June | 23.2 | 74 | Comfortable swims |
| July | 25.2 | 77 | Long swims, the islands |
| August | 26.2 | 79 | Year high |
| September | 25.0 | 77 | As warm as July |
| October | 22.5 | 73 | Swimmable, cooler air |
| November | 20.3 | 69 | Locals stop |
| December | 17.5 | 64 | Off-season |
Ksamil's sea runs about half a degree to a degree warmer than Saranda's in summer, because the bays are shallow and sheltered by the islands. In August that is the difference between 25.5°C and 26.2°C. Saranda's month table is in our Saranda weather guide.
Ksamil weather in September and October
September. Highs of 26°C, nights of 19°C, and a 25°C sea. On paper it is a second July. In practice the first half is reliably summer and the second half brings the first big rain of autumn: the month averages 109 mm, most of it in a few stormy days. If you can only travel late in the month, keep a Butrint or Blue Eye day ready for the grey one.
October. Highs of 22°C and a sea of 22.5°C, as warm as June. The weather is fine for swimming on most days. What changes is the village: through October many beach bars stack their sunbeds and some restaurants close for the winter, so the experience depends on which week you pick. Our Ksamil in October guide goes week by week.
Ksamil forecast: 10, 14 and 30 days
Within five days, a forecast for Ksamil is reliable. Beyond that, treat it as a trend.
- June to August: forecasts barely move. Expect sun and highs around 30°C most days, with a breeze picking up after lunch. That afternoon wind is why boat trips to the islands go out in the morning.
- September to May: check closer to the day. A southerly system can bring a day of heavy rain and rough water, and that is the day ferries to Corfu and small boats to the islands may not run.
- BBC Weather, AccuWeather, yr.no and Windy all cover Ksamil. Windy adds wind speed and wave height, which is the number to check before you book a boat trip.
Ksamil webcam
WhatsUpCams lists a live Ksamil webcam at the Hotel Abalone, a pan-and-tilt camera pointed at the beaches and the three islands. It is the quickest way to see whether today is a swimming day. A second camera listed at a Ksamil campsite is marked inactive on the sites that mirror it, so do not rely on that one.
Ksamil vs Saranda vs Himara weather
| Ksamil | Saranda | Himara | |
|---|---|---|---|
| August sea | 26.2°C | 25.5°C | 25.5°C |
| July high | 30°C | 30°C | about 31°C |
| Rain per year | about 1,150 mm | about 1,460 mm | see our Himara guide |
| Feel | Shallow bays, warmest water | Town bay, a bit windier | Open coast, deeper water |
Ksamil's summer sea is warmer than Saranda's or Himara's, which is a big part of why it fills up. Further north, the Himara weather guide covers a coast with deeper, slightly cooler water and bigger beaches.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best month to visit Ksamil for the weather?
June or the first three weeks of September. June has a 23°C sea and almost no rain; early September has a 25°C sea and thinner crowds than August. For the warmest water regardless of crowds, August averages 26.2°C, the highest of the year.
Is the water warm in Ksamil?
From June to October, yes. The sea averages 23.2°C in June, 25 to 26°C from July to September and 22.5°C in October, according to seatemperature.info's 10-year averages. From December to April it sits between about 15 and 17.5°C, too cold for most people.
Does it rain a lot in Ksamil?
Not in summer. June, July and August together average under 60 mm of rain. The wet season is October to March, and November is the wettest month at about 193 mm. September is mixed: dry early, often stormy late.
Can you swim in Ksamil in October?
Yes. The sea averages 22.5°C in October, the same as early June. Afternoons are around 22°C, so it is cooler getting out, and some days are rainy. More of a limit than the water is that many beach bars close during the month.
What is Ksamil like in May?
Warm on land and cool in the water. Highs reach about 23°C, but the sea is only 19.6°C, so swims are short. Beaches are empty and prices are low, which is the point of going; see our Ksamil in May guide.
The short version
Ksamil has a warmer sea than the towns around it and one of the shortest seasons. Go between June and mid-September for the islands, pick June or early September to avoid the crush, and outside summer plan around Butrint, not the beach. For getting there, the Ksamil travel guide and our Ksamil page cover the rest.
